Chapter Text
Dreamland wasn’t exactly the most hospitable of planets. At least, not when Dedede could help it.
In a territory with so few inhabitants, word spread quickly, especially when it concerned the monarch and his lackey. This time though, instead of the hot topic being petty gossip, the people were panicked.
Granted, they didn’t fully understand the source of this panic. Livestock had gone missing by the bucketful, with only a handful of eyewitness reports and a large pile of bones left to explain what had happened.
A monster ! In Dreamland !
And of course, it didn’t take very long for the blame to be pinned on a certain penguin. Soon enough, people began pouring into the castle, demanding answers. The king, as gluttonous as ever, paid little attention to them, instead munching on a feast laid out on his table.
Behind the large arches in the king’s quarters, a stout, plumed figure lingered in the darkness, carefully listening in on the conversation going on. Stray fragments of the ruckus lingered in the air with every accusation.
“...huge monster eating all your sheep?!”
“...must be in the castle!”
“...Where would you even put in… King Dedede’s castle…?!”
Suddenly, a new voice was added to the conflict– A little girl.
“Hold it, Dr. Escargoon!” she shouted.
Tiffany, the figure recognized.
“Can’t you just listen to them?!”
“Yeah, don’t be so high and mighty!” her brother said.
“Well, if it isn’t the imprudent Miss Tiff and her pipsqueak brother,” Escargoon snarked, waving his spear as he spoke. “This isn’t any of your business.”
As they argued, the figure’s ruby gaze drifted to a small tank of water by Dedede’s side. Inside was a small red octopus-like creature… Almost reminiscent of descriptions of the monster. When everyone else’s attention shifted to it as well, the king finally decided to take a break from his meal to strike down their claims in his usual, boastful fashion.
“ This is the monster you’ve been talking about?” he laughed, standing up from his throne and waving a hand towards the tank. “This is my pet, Octakon! How could this cutie gobble up your sheep?”
The girl’s eyes remained fixed on the glass, skeptical. The figure made a note to be careful about what he said around her.
With a swerve of his cloak, he turned away and disappeared into one of the castle’s many dark passageways.
He cursed under his breath. It was going to be a long night.
The natural next step for Dreamland’s residents was to seek help from Kabu.
Though they didn’t know much about its origin, the tall, wooden idol had been of great aid to them throughout the years. Its wisdom was something they could always confide in, and this monster situation was no different.
“Villagers and residents of Castle Dedede,” Kabu spoke, its booming voice carrying throughout the valley. “What do you seek from Kabu?”
“Honored stone sage! Each night a dreadful monster has been devouring our sheep!” Sir Ebrum, cabinet minister and Tiff's father, declared.
“And because of that, I haven't been getting any of my beauty sleep!” Lady Like cried.
The mayor stood up to say his piece next, his hands clasped together somewhat nervously. “Although his majesty says he isn't the cause…” he trailed off, then for Chief Bookem to raise a hand in the air.
“It's still a possibility!” the officer yelled.
“Tell us, Kabu!”
“We need your wisdom now!”
“Long-lived Kabu shall answer. A demon beast grows in this land of dreams.” Kabu towered over them all; the prophetic words made Tiff's heart sink.
A demon beast?
“A thing created by a being of darkness known as Nightmare,” Kabu explained.
“So you mean Cappy Town is being targeted by… who, again?” Tiff asked, hesitantly. She could hear the faint out of an engine in the distance.
“Nightmare, the owner of a corporation that dominates the universe, Nightmare Enterprises.”
The words caused another ripple of unease through the crowd. “What will become of Cappy Town?” Mayor Blustergas pleaded.
Kabu was silent for a moment.
“Dreamland… will be destroyed.”
The words were said simply, as if, terrifyingly enough, the fate of their world was of no concern to him. Tiff supposed, through her fear, that a being as old as it didn't have any attachments to a town such as her own. Despite the matter-of-fact tone of these words, panicked whispers filled the valley. Tiff found her heart plummeting.
“But Kabu! There must be some hope left!” she cried through the murmurs. It hit her suddenly, a myth Kabu had mentioned long ago. “If I remember right, there's a legend–”
“...Exceeding spacetime, a Star Warrior will come to aid us,” Kabu recalled. “Kirby of the Stars.”
“Kirby?”
“They sound so cool!” Tuff said, awestruck.
They did sound rather cool. Tiff couldn't help but imagine a tough knight, one with a gleaming sword and shield, a brave warrior coming down from the stars to save their village from distress.
The sound of a roaring engine brought her out of her thoughts.
“Whatta bunch of nonsense!” King Dedede and Escargoon came screeching down the hill in their tank. A single cappy was hit as they came to a halt. Thankfully, they seemed mostly unharmed. “What star warrior?!”
To Tiff's growing horror, they angled the tank gun to face directly at Kabu, the barrel staring it in the face.
“Kabu does not lie,” it said, unbothered. Dedede only laughed.
“What do you predict’ll happen if I push this here button?”
“Dedede will not press the button”
The king guffawed, smacking Escargoon in the back of the head and holding a hand over the button to fire. Tiff gasped as he swung his hand down and–
A flash of light overhead caught everyone's attention, Dedede pausing for a moment to look at the sky. A glittering object soared through the air, like a falling star.
Tiff squinted at it. The closer it came, the more it appeared like a real falling star. Her hands trembled slightly with excitement.
Could that be the Star Warrior Kabu had predicted would arrive?
An explosion erupted from the distance as the star crash-landed, the impact kicking up dust as the smoldering object rolled through the fields before coming to a stop at the edge of a cliff.
The townspeople stood in shock, Kabu’s knowing gaze staring down at Dedede and Escargoon.
Tiff grabbed her brother's hand at once, running out of the clearing and letting him drag behind her. “Come on! What are we waiting for?!”
The rest of the cappies snapped to attention at her words, following suit as she led them towards the star. Dedede swerved around her and took up the front instead. She ran faster.
If this was their key to saving Cappy Town, she wouldn't let them waste a second.
Kirby hadn't been at all what she expected.
He had turned out to be a soft, squishy pink puffball, barely even half her height. His blue eyes sparkled as he gave her a friendly, curious smile.
He could barely even talk.
Despite this, he had saved her. He had saved her from the sharp rocks at the bottom of that ravine, and even though he struggled to say their names with his baby-like voice, he was still a hero.
Even if at the moment he might have just devoured all of their livestock.
Tiff stared at Kirby in shock, the star warrior standing in front of a field of sheep skeletons. She heard Tuff, Fololo, and Falala catch up to her. Kirby didn't turn around.
“What happened here?” she asked, hoping her horror wasn't obvious.
“Did Kirby eat them..?” Tuff muttered.
But, that didn't make any sense! Their sheep had been going missing long before Kirby crashed, but…
She looked around them. No one had followed them out yet.
“Either way,” she started, grabbing onto Kirby's paw and making her way down the hill. The others quickly followed. “We shouldn't stay here.”
As the five scrambled to hide in a nearby barn, her stomach churned. This must be what it feels like to flee the scene of a crime, she thought. Tiff slammed the door shut once they were all inside, cringing at the noise it made in response. It had been much louder than she had intended.
Once they’d settled in the dark, moist barn, Tuff was the first to speak up. He pointed an accusatory finger at Kirby, causing the latter to recoil in surprise.
“Did you gobble up all those sheep?!” he said. Kirby’s eyes widened.
“Kirby, this is important,” Tiff frowned. “We need a straight answer.”
“Yeah, this is a big deal!”
Ultimately though, Kirby wasn't given the chance to say anything. The group suddenly froze in their spots, stunned at the sound of familiar voices coming from outside.
“Again with the sheep...?”
“Ugh, that hut over there stinks.”
Tiff’s breath hitched, and she ran to the other side of the barn. The others must have heard it as well, because Fololo and Falala quickly grabbed a burlap sack and handed it to her. She placed it over Kirby’s head, hearing a muffled “poyo?” from underneath before she promptly shushed him.
Those three were the last people she wanted to see right now. If they found out Kirby was here, then…
She shuddered at the mere idea.
The door was suddenly torn apart by a flash of pink light. She flinched as the splinters hit the ground in front of them. Two figures stood in the doorway, one in teal armor and the other in green.
“Ah, miss Tiff.”
“And mister Bun.”
Tiff narrowed her eyes at them. “Sword and Blade…”
Blade stepped forward. “We're here on our lord's orders,” he said. The five of them tensed up, and Tiff could feel Kirby shift behind her.
“We're searching for someone named Kirby,” Sword continued. “I don't suppose you've… seen them around?”
“Ah! So are we.”
“But uh- he's not here!”
A third figure appeared behind the two. The barn went silent.
“Is that so…?”
In the dim lighting, Tiff could barely make out the cross-cut visor of the knight's mask. His golden horns and pearly armor reflected the dim moonlight, seemingly glistening in the dark. A rose colored cape trailed behind him, the collar decorated with the fur of some poor animal. His cold, ruby eyes stared back at her, and his lackeys kneeled.
Sir Galacta Knight.
Galacta Knight did not deserve his title. He wasn't loyal to anyone. Well, not to King Dedede, and certainly not to Dreamland. He claimed to be the greatest in the galaxy, carrying an air of confidence and selfishness wherever he went. He let Sword and Blade steal from the townspeople, the chief too fearful of their lord's anger to stop the bandits. As cocky as the knight was, he was certainly powerful. At least his boasting had some merit.
“Tiffany,” he greeted, disinterested. “And others.”
“Hey!” Fololo and Falala shushed Tuff immediately. Galacta Knight ignored them.
His eyes lingered on the burlap sack behind them, drawing his lance. With the other hand, he grabbed ahold of his cape and pulled, revealing iridescent feathers underneath. He spread his wings high and shot forward like a bullet, plumes scattering across the barn.
Tiff jumped back on instinct, and so did the others, realizing their mistake all too late– Kirby had been left completely exposed.
Galacta Knight jabbed his lance forward, impaling the bag and ripping it off of the star warrior.
“Prepare yourself, Kirby,” he laughed, looking from where he had thrown the bag and tilting his head to meet Kirby's gaze. “Prepare for a duel with the greatest warrior in the—”
…
….
……..???????
Galacta Knight froze. His eyes hadn't met Kirby’s immediately, stopping a few inches above him before he adjusted them to properly look at the pink puffball.
The knight looked positively bewildered with what he saw.
“Um… Sir?” Sword and Blade glanced at each other nervously, unsure what to do about Galacta’s reaction.
The knight slowly lowered his lance, his mind clearly distracted. “You… you look like…” He shook his head. “This can’t be.”
Hoisting his cape back onto his pauldrons, he swerved around and drifted out of the barn, his sabatons barely making a sound against the floorboards. His pale frame nearly resembled that of a ghost, with his waving cape adding an effect to match.
That’s not right, Tiff thought. She’d never seen the warrior act like this. Something about it was so… disconcerting. Against her better judgment, she followed him outside onto the grassy hill. He was standing on its highest point, staring attentively at Castle Dedede in the distance.
“Sir Galacta Knight…” she began. “What was that about?”
“So this is your ‘Kirby of the Stars’, hm?” he sputtered, his voice tainted with bitterness. “You’re about to have a demon beast problem on your hands, star warrior .”
As if on cue, an explosion went off in one of the castle towers.
“And sooner than I thought, for that matter.”